Dancing Lessons
by Seinaru Kibou no Tenshi
Summary: (24 Feb: A Not-So-Perfect Evening) When Takeru wants to ask the girl he likes to the school-dance, he goes to his best friend for lessons. Unfortunately, there's a slight problem - Hikari wishes that she was the one he was taking!
1. Prologue

It's so hot here that I can hardly breathe, let alone write anything deep and meaningful. This isn't going to be either of those two things. However, it might possibly be very cute and fluffy.  
  
  
  
  
  
Obviously, I don't own any of them, if only because everyone knows that Takeru is Hikari's bitch. ^.~  
  
  
  
DANCING LESSONS  
  
PROLOGUE: A FAVOUR  
  
"Um, I have to something important to ask you, and you can say 'no'. I won't be mad or anything, I promise," Takeru began in his usual, hesitant manner, propping himself up on his elbow to look at Hikari. It was one of those endless summer afternoons where the air shimmered with heat and the hours seemed to blur into each other. The two friends were lying on the floor of the Yagami's apartment, eating grape popsicles and only half- watching re-runs of Cowboy Bebop.* On the screen, Spike lithely dodged a volley of bullets and got off a shot of his own at the mad clown-assassin attacking him. Just watching it was enough to make Hikari tired.  
  
"Mmmhmm," she replied lazily, rolling over onto her stomach and resting her head on her arms so that she was looking back at him. A familiar, warm sweetness rose within her. In the space of six, short years, her friend had gone from being cute to being . . . well, cute. Dark with sweat, his dirty- blond hair stood up in little spikes around his head, and his eyes were as pure and true a blue as they had ever been. Currently, his mouth was stained purple by the popsicle he had just eaten and there were matching drips down the front of his green shirt, "What, Takeru-ch . . . kun?"**  
  
Hikari gave herself a surreptitious kick to the ankle, relieved that she had caught herself just in time. It was one thing to know she had feelings for her best friend; it was quite another to let him know about them. As well as she knew him, she still wasn't sure how he would react to her telling her that she loved him. He might think it was a joke and laugh at her, or might reply that he was very sorry but he didn't share them, or . . . just maybe . . . he might love her back. However, it was too much of a risk and she was not courageous enough to take it.  
  
"Uh, it's about the dance at the school," he continued. Takeru always took a long time to get to the point when he asked favours of people. She feigned new interest in Spike's battle, nervous and excited at the same time. Knowing Takeru, this could all be a roundabout way of asking her to the dance with him. She had deliberately turned down all her other offers in the hopes that he would get the message and ask her to be his partner. If so, maybe the answer to the question she had been afraid of asking was 'yes'; maybe he had been equally scared to speak before now.  
  
"The dance?" she repeated, struggling to keep her voice even.  
  
"Yeah," he said, warming to the subject, "There's this girl I want to ask to it, but I've got a big problem: I can't dance. Since you're such a good dancer . . . . "  
  
"You want me to teach you," she replied tonelessly. If she had been a cartoon character, her heart would have been lying on the floor shattered into a thousand, red pieces. Since she wasn't, it somehow carried on beating. It sounded loud to her own ears.  
  
"Don't sound too enthusiastic," he rolled his eyes, "I did say you could say 'no', Hikari."  
  
With superhuman effort, she managed to force a smile onto her face, "Won't Yamato be hurt that you didn't ask him?"  
  
"There's a reason Yamato volunteers his band to play at every school dance," Takeru grinned back at her, "And that he's the lead singer for them and not a dancer. He has two left feet and two left hands to go with them."  
  
"What about your dad?"  
  
"Where do you think Yamato got his dancing abilities?" he laughed, then sobered, "Hey, Hikari, you really don't have to do this. I can ask Sora or someone else."  
  
Hikari looked at him for a long time. She could not imagine anything harder than dancing in his arms, knowing that he loved another girl and would be with her on the night of the dance. It would be like dancing on splinters of broken glass. Worse, she could never let him know how much it hurt her, could never let her smile fade no matter how she bled inside. At last, she replied, "Sora doesn't know the Viennese Waltz, and I do. Besides, what else are best friends for?"  
  
"You're a life-saver, Hikari," he sighed in relief as he got to his feet, "Meanwhile, I have to go home. Mom is actually cooking dinner tonight, which means I have to be around to put out the fires."  
  
She stood too, absently straightening her crumpled shirt and brushing invisible dust off her shorts. She followed him down the hallway to the door and undid the latches for him, "When do you want to start?"  
  
"Tomorrow after school?"  
  
"Tomorrow," she echoed, "I'll see you."  
  
"See you," he said cheerfully, "Enjoy the rest of your day."  
  
Closing the door behind him, she waited for Takeru's footsteps to completely disappear down the hallway before she allowed herself to lean back against the cool wood and cry.  
  
****  
  
TO BE CONTINUED  
  
****  
  
* For those sticklers for detail, they're watching session 20, which is called Pierrot le Fou. ** - Chan is very intimate. -Kun is more informal than -san, but it's not an endearment at all. It's pretty standard for a teenage boy\young man. 


	2. Breakfast at the Yagami's

_Time to reply to reviews . . . I used to do this on the review board, but FF.net has made that a 'suspendable' offence. _

_* Japanese suffixes are complex, and I should have explained myself better. To a certain degree, yes, '-chan' and '-kun' are comparable. Young girls and very young boys will be called '-chan' as matter of course. Older boys and young men are generally addressed as '-kun', although feminism in Japan has meant some girls are called '-kun' too. Even these usages aren't neutral, of course. It does imply a certain degree of closeness and\or an absence of respect. _

_However, as with all Japanese suffixes, the issue does get complicated: '-chan' can also be used as an intimate endearment, usually with a shortened version of the name. Think of Nuriko's infamous 'Tamaaa-chan', if you've seen Fushigi Yuugi. It would be that way in the case of Takeru, which is why I noted what I did. _

_* Cowboy Bebop is originally Japanese. I've actually only watched it in Japanese, but I would imagine it's one of the few shows that works better in translation, because of its very Wild Western meets film noir atmosphere. Although no Takehito Koyasu-sama in the dub and that's a major loss IMO . . .  ^.~ _

_* Why were they at Hikari's house? She has the best grape popsicles. Trust me, I've lived on grape popiscles all the last week. Anyway, all the details about Takeru's crush and the dance will be revealed as this story progresses. Promise. ^.^ _

_* All I can say is "let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!" ^.~ _

*** **_And, for no particular reason, a big 'otanjyoubi omedetou' to Yamamoto-sama for 7 February! He'll never, ever read this, but . . . hey, no point having a one-girl fanclub if they don't remember these little details. ^.^;****_

**DANCING LESSONS**

**PART ONE: BREAKFAST AT THE YAGAMI'S **

"No prizes for guessing who is on your mind," Taichi commented as he walked behind Hikari to fetch his toast from the oven.

She looked down at her bowl of cereal and felt her cheeks grow warm. Somehow, without even thinking about it, she had managed to arrange the multicoloured letters to spell 'Takeru'. Annoyed with herself, she pushed the bowl away from her and sat back in her chair. It was bad enough that she had barely slept the previous night for thinking about him  without her own subconscious turning against her too. 

"You know, we do live in a new millennium," Taichi continued, sitting opposite her and spreading butter thickly on his toast. He took a bite and swallowed before he continued, "It is perfectly okay for a girl to tell a guy she likes him. Odds are that he feels the same way, but has been too afraid to speak and will be glad she did." 

"I know how he feels about me," she replied quietly, "I'm his best friend." 

"That doesn't mean you can't be more," he shrugged, "Things change, Hikari. They change the whole time." 

"Even if he's in love with someone else?" she asked, while her brother took another bite of his toast.

"No way!" Taichi exclaimed, spraying crumbs all over the place. A disgusted expression on her face, Hikari delicately picked one off her blazer and reached over to drop it on his plate. He grinned in embarrassment, "Sorry about that. Still, there's absolutely no way Takaishi Takeru-kun is in love with anyone else."

"Why?"

"He's only been half in love with you since he was eight years old," he made a face at her, "Come on, even I can see it, and it usually takes a sledgehammer across the back of the head for me to get the point." 

"We're not eight anymore," she said bleakly, "And he's in love with someone else. He told me so yesterday." 

Taichi was silent for a long time, chewing on his toast and taking a long swallow of his orange juice. Hikari pulled her bowl back towards her and swirled her spoon in the milk to jumble up the letters. 

She felt tears begin to prick at her eyes again. Everything had been so simple when they were eight. He had been her best friend - the one who had smiled out of pure happiness whenever he saw her; the one who had watched over when she had been helpless; the one who had held her hand tight when she had been scared. She would have never even thought to question her relationship with Takeru; to be afraid that he might like someone more than her, apart from perhaps Patamon and his brother. She would have given anything to go back to that time, to see everything so simply and clearly again, but that was impossible. Time only ever moved in one direction, and that was away from the past with all its memories and regrets. 

At last, her brother said, "I've seen how his expression changes when he looks at you. He gets this really amazed look in his eyes, like he can't quite believe what he is seeing, like there's this incredible person in front of him and she's somehow in his life. He still might not realise it, he still might think he likes another girl, but it's really you he loves." 

Hikari opened her mouth to answer him, but the sound of someone knocking on the front door cut off whatever she might have said. It had to be Takeru - he came by her apartment every morning to walk her to school. She felt her stomach sink. 

"That'll be him now. Want me to get it?" 

"No, _nii-san_, I will," she pushed out her chair and dumped her half-eaten cereal into the sink, before walking through to the hallway. She took a deep breath to steady herself, then undid the latches and pulled the door open. Her heart hopped painfully in her chest. As she had expected, Takeru was standing there, his schoolbag slung over his shoulders and a smile on his face. Unlike his brother who found a way to make even his school's uniform look casual, he was smartly dressed. She suspected Ms Takaishi wouldn't let him out the house any other way. His white shirt was tucked neatly into his grey pants, while his green blazer was pressed and his shoes shone. Only his tie was crooked - he had never mastered the art of doing it properly. 

Without thinking, she stepped forward and began to fix it for him. Takeru was one of the few people who was even better-looking up close, as she had discovered in the many times that they had landed up in a heap after coming back from the Digital World. Up close, his eyes were the pure, intense blue of the sky after a storm, and a little, white scar was visible on his cheek like a god's kiss. It was the result of his long-ago fight against the Digimon Kaizer. He smelt nice too - clean soap and lemony shampoo. She never understood why some boys thought it was sexy to smell of chemical warfare. Standing like this, she could almost forget that he didn't love her. (1)

He cleared his throat, "Uh, thanks, Hikari. Mom keeps telling me some stupid story about a rabbit and a tree, but it doesn't help me remember how to do it at all."  

Suddenly, she realised she had finished the tie some seconds ago, and her hand was still resting on his chest. It rose and fell against her palm, and she could just feel his heartbeat through the linen of his shirt, soft and regular. She snatched her hand away from him, as if scalded. 

"M-my pleasure." 

Hastily, she turned away from him and walked back into the apartment, so he did not notice how crimson her cheeks were. He followed her inside. 

"Let me fetch my books and we can go." 

"Okay, I'll say hi to Taichi-san." 

As he stepped into the kitchen, she headed for the little room that she shared with her older brother. Closing the door behind her, she sat on the bed and breathed deeply to steady herself. She had to get a grip. Takeru might have been her best friend, but he was in love with somebody else and she could never let him know how she felt about him. 

She knew Takeru. If he had any suspicion that he was hurting her, he would never forgive himself. He would beat himself up about it night and day until he was convinced that he was a terrible person and that he didn't deserve to be friends with her. She did not want that for him. She loved him; she wanted him to be happy, even if he found that happiness with another person. 

Sighing, she lay back on her bed and clasped her hands over her stomach. Just another minute to center herself, then she would go and meet him  . . .  

"So, do you have a date lined up for the dance next week?" Taichi asked, his voice still sounding strangely deep to her ears. Her brother's voice had been almost as high as hers until a few months ago when unexpectedly and much to his relief it had broken. Now that it had settled down, it was almost as deep as Yamato's. 

"Um, there's this one girl I want to take, Taichi-san, but I haven't asked her yet," Takeru replied. His voice was soft and slightly tentative, and still had the faint traces of an accent, although he had been back in Odaiba for three years now, "Because I think it might be a good idea to know how to dance before I do." 

"Hey, Hikari's a great dancer," Taichi said with his usual enthusiasm, "If anyone can whip you into shape, it's her. So, who's the lucky girl? Is it anyone I know?" 

Hikari sat bolt upright on her bed, all her attention suddenly on their conversation. She knew it shouldn't have mattered to her whom Takeru liked. It should have been enough to know that it wasn't her. However, unreasonably, there were certain names that she wanted to hear him say less than others. Ryuuzaki Umi topped that particular list. A tall, elegant girl with pale-blue hair and sapphire eyes, Umi was model-slim and model-pretty. There wasn't a boy in the school that didn't have a photograph of her somewhere in his locker or diary. She had even heard that some boys had paid up to Y3000 for a set of five of them! Boys could be so ridiculous, especially as the only way that Umi was slightly bearable was as a photograph! She was the most spoilt and self-centred person that Hikari had ever met. (2)

"Well, I guess so," Takeru said evasively, "But I don't want to tell anyone until after I've asked her." 

"That's fine." 

Letting out the breath that she was ashamed to have been holding, Hikari fell back onto the bed. Takeru had always been too good at keeping his secrets. He was the only one in their group apart from Iori and maybe Koushirou who managed to keep his Christmas presents a secret until the time came to open them. 

Her hand went beneath her blouse to finger the slender, silver chain that he had given her the previous year. A tiny crystal sparkled its rainbow on the end of it. In the card that had come with it, he'd written: 'When you were eight and I asked you what you wanted for your birthday, you said that you wished I could get you a rainbow. I'm sorry that it's taken me six years to work out how to do it!" Only Takeru would remember a stupid, little thing that she had said in passing when she was eight. She had been so certain on that day that he did love her, but time had passed and he had never said anything else to her to make her think that they were more than friends. 

"Anyway, I better find Hikari-chan, or we'll be late for algebra class," Takeru laughed, "And Sakamoto-_sensei _always gives extra homework as a punishment for being late. He says we've wasted his time, so we need to make it up for him." 

"I remember that," Taichi groaned, "Once, I had extra homework every night for a month. Sakamoto-_sensei_ was insane." 

"Um, well, at least she doesn't make us hold buckets of water out in the hallway like Takahashi­-_sensei_," Takeru replied. Hikari could hear the soft brush of his feet against the carpet as he crossed the living-room towards her bedroom. 

Scrambling to her feet and grabbing the bookbag from the bedside table, she threw open the door to smile brightly at him. She knew she could not let that smile slip from her face until she got home that night, "Sorry. I couldn't find my maths' book, because _Nii-san_ had piled his junk all over it. Anyway, we really need to get going, Takeru-kun. " 

"Ha ha," Taichi said sarcastically, "Yes, you'd better get going, because _Nii-san heard that." _

"Takeru-kun will protect me from you," the teasing words were out of Hikari's mouth before she had a chance to think about them. When she realised what she had said, heat rose in her cheeks, but Takeru just laughed. 

"Uh huh," he said, "I'm Hikari-chan's personal champion, and you'll have to go through me to get to her."

"I wouldn't want to humiliate you, Takeru-kun," Taichi replied airily, appearing in the doorway and chewing on the core of an apple, "Besides, if you don't leave right now, Sakamoto-_sensei_ will be mad, and I don't think even 'Hikari-chan's personal champion' can stand up to her. Am I right or am I right?" 

Takeru looked across at her, "Let's run!" 

"And fast!" 

*

NOTES:

(1) Takeru doesn't really have a scar in the show. It's entirely my innovation, just because I think that's one of the best scenes. ^.~ 

(2) From _Magic Knights Rayearth_. Apologies to people who like her. I adore Hikaru and Fuu, but Umi needs a swift slap upside the head. ^.^;


	3. An Awkward Situation

**Courage: **I think it's become Takahashi Rumiko is such a popular writer in the West, as well as in Japan. Almost everyone knows her name. I called the sensei that because Ranma ½ introduced me to the concept of students holding buckets of water in the hallways for punishment. I don't know if that really happens in Japan, though I read somewhere that it did. ^.~

**Cracker: **Or my devil-incarnate Science teacher from a few years ago. Scary how they actually exist . . .  About the "clean soap" and fruity shampoo, there's no profound reason. I just like the smell myself. Also, I can't see Takeru dousing himself in powerful cologne. Daisuke and Yamato, yes. Takeru, no. ^.^ 

**Avaria: **Yep. Short of being confronted with the powers of darkness or Hikari in trouble, Takeru's useless at expressing his feelings. 

**Alan: **Funky spacing = Word 2000 hates me, and I'm too lazy to write the HTML by hand. ^.~

**Silver Warrior: **Takeru definitely is her personal champion. There are so many cute scenes where he protects her. Of course, I should say that she protects him as well. I've carried it through to this chapter.

**Ominous Pen: **I think it's because Takeru quite blatantly worships Hikari, whereas her feelings don't come across as strongly. It's actually hard to imagine Takeru liking someone else, except perhaps Sora. I think he has a teeny crush on Sora. ^.^ 

**Starlight: **Takeru was incredibly brave to stand up against Ken, and incredibly tough to beat him. Ken's a black belt . . . . 

**Everyone else: **Thank you for your reviews! Just because I didn't comment on them doesn't mean that I didn't love reading them! ^.^

**DANCING LESSONS**

**PART TWO: AN AWKWARD SITUATION**

"By process of substitution into the quadratic equation, we are able to determine that x is equal to 1,34 or 3,46," Mr Sakamoto said, ruling a thick line beneath the answer to the problem and dusting off his hands with a self-satisfied air, "Now, class, let's draw the graph of this equation."

As their teacher drew his axes up on the board, Hikari glanced across at Takeru. His golden head was bent diligently over his textbook and he was scribbling something in the notepad next to him. She frowned slightly. Takeru never paid any attention in algebra class, let alone copied down what Mr Sakamoto wrote on the board. Whenever they had a test or an exam, he just asked Koushirou or Jyou to teach him what he needed to know, and they never refused to help him. All the Chosen still saw Takeru as their little brother, even though he was taller than most of them now. 

Takeru tore off the top sheet and slid it across the table to her. She should have guessed that it wasn't work. Smiling to herself, Hikari looked to see what he had written, and realised that it was a hastily-done drawing. It showed three stick-figures that she recognised as herself, Takeru and Mr Sakamoto. Mr Sakamoto was spitting equations at her, only for them to be deflected by Takeru. He had given himself Angemon's staff and a helmet. Beneath it, he'd scribbled: "Hikari's personal champion saves her from Mathsmon!!" She couldn't help herself - she giggled. 

Everyone turned to look at her, and Mr Sakamoto's chalk screeched to a halt on the board. Hikari felt the heat rise in her cheeks.

"I'm glad you find algebra so amusing, Yagami-kun," their teacher said acidly, "Seeing as you enjoy it so much, you can do twenty extra problems for homework tonight." (1)

Meekly, "Yes, sensei." 

Hikari heard a chair scrape beside her and Takeru stood, "Sensei, it was my fault. I made Hikari laugh. I should be punished, not her."

"Why am I not surprised? You two are worse than your brothers," he ran a hand through his thinning hair, "I expect to see thirty problems from you on my desk tomorrow, Takaishi-kun. In the meantime, let's get back to work." 

A grimace on his face, Takeru sat back in his place. He picked up his blue pen and tapped out an impatient beat on his notepad with it. 

"You didn't need to do that," Hikari hissed, "I know how much you hate algebra." 

"Um, I kinda did," he smiled at her. She knew him well enough to know it wasn't a polite smile given to pretend he didn't care, to make her feel better. It was the sweet and sincere smile of a child; the sort of smile he might have given before he was old enough to know that a smile could also deceive. She felt her heart begin to race, as a new possibility opened up in her mind like the sky after rain. 

"Thanks," she whispered. 

----------

"It's definitely you," Miyako told Hikari, as she put her Japanese books back into her locker and removed her biology file. Although Miyako was a year ahead of her in school, they had arranged to have their lockers together, so they could see each other between lessons. Hikari had never been more glad of that fact than she was now. She needed her friend's opinion about what had happened in algebra class. She needed to know that she wasn't blowing everything out of proportion. 

Hugging her own bag to her chest, she looked at her friend, "Do you really think so?" 

"I know so," she replied confidently, "I mean, we are talking Takeru-kun here. It takes him forever to get to the point." 

"And I did overhear him say that it was a girl nii-san knew . . ." she mused, "How many girls at our school could he know?"

"Exactly!" Miyako slammed her locker shut and turned to face Hikari, "I bet you anything these dancing lessons are just a ploy. He'll put on some romantic music, take you into his arms, look deeply into your eyes, and . . . bingo!"

Laughing, "My life is not a romance novel, Miyako." 

"Wait and see," Miyako said sagely, "Just tell me if he's a good kisser, okay?"

"Miyako!" Hikari pretended to swat her with her bag of books, "Ecchi ne!" (2)

"As I'm sure you won't say to Takeru-chan when he's kissing you . . . ." Miyako trilled, then fled down the corridor before Hikari could object. 

----------

"Thanks for saving me a space, Hikari," Takeru said happily, as he put his tray down on the table and sat opposite her. She raised an eyebrow when she saw what he was having for lunch: a hamburger and chips, two apples, a bowl of green jelly and a carton of milk jostled for space on his crowded tray. She had no idea how Takeru stayed as thin as he was. He took a bite of his hamburger and swallowed, "So, are we still on for this afternoon?"

"Of course," Hikari felt her cheeks grow warm. No matter how she tried, she couldn't stop thinking about what Miyako had said to her earlier that morning. The scene had replayed itself a thousand times in her mind. Soft music would be playing in the background, while they danced in each other's arms. (Her imagination conveniently glossed over the part where Takeru couldn't dance.) Her head would be tucked just beneath his chin, and his arms would be warm and tight around her. For some minutes, they would sway in comfortable silence - in a perfect understanding that needed no words to express it - before she would look up to find him smiling back at her. He would lift a hand to cup her cheek and they would kiss and it would be sweeter than summer strawberries.

"Well, you won't sound so enthusiastic when I've stood on your feet a few hundred times," Takeru popped a chip into his mouth. She reached across to steal one from his plate, and he pretended to scowl at her. 

"You'll _break_ my feet if you carrying on eating so much. Does your coach know you eat like this every day?" 

"My dancing coach does," he grinned at her, "Are you going to make me do sit-ups, Coach Yagami?"

"Only laps," she laughed, "And maybe some press-ups." 

Chuckling, Takeru started in on his hamburger again. 

"Shove up, Takeru," Daisuke told the other boy, as he walked up to the table where the two friends were eating lunch. He had not changed much in three years. He might have dyed red streaks in his aubergine hair and exchanged soccer for baseball, but he was still as confident and easy-going as ever. He had learnt how to laugh at himself, however, which made all the difference. He still wore the goggles that Taichi had given him, despite their teachers' best efforts to persuade him that they weren't part of the uniform. Takeru obligingly shifted along the bench to make room for him. Daisuke set down his own tray before vaulting onto the bench and grinning at them,  "Guess who I am taking to the dance." 

"Hikari, even though she doesn't know it yet?" Takeru said with a little laugh, and she glared at him. He pretended to wince. 

Even though they all still teased Daisuke about his crush on her, she knew how much he had been hurt by it. She remembered the empty look in his eyes when she had told him that she could never love him, that they would always be friends but nothing more. He had not said a word in reply, simply turned and walked away from her in silence. She had not followed him. The next she had heard of him, he had been in America visiting Wallace and Mimi. She had guessed he had needed time and space to get over her. It had worked, because they had been able to rebuild their friendship over the following months. She counted him as one of her best friends now, and knew that he felt the same. (3)

"Wrong," he shook his head vigourously, "A certain Iwakura Aiko. Captain of the volleyball team, president of our class and only the hottest girl in school. After you, of course, Hikari." 

Hikari smiled at him. Daisuke was always so sweet to her. If it hadn't been for Takeru, she might have been able to love him. 

"Um, how much did you pay her?" 

"Not funny, Takeru," Daisuke made a face, then leaned back against the bench to look at them, "So, I guess you two are going together." 

"I don't have a date yet," Hikari said, glancing at Takeru.

"And I haven't asked mine." 

Daisuke rolled his eyes, "So, ask Hikari already. Don't worry about me. Just pretend I'm not here. You two always were good at that when we were kids," 

Takeru looked down at the tray in front of him. Picking up one of the apples, he began to toss it from one hand to the other. Hikari watched him, feeling more sick by the second. What if Miyako had been wrong? What if he didn't want to ask her? What if he truly did love someone else? 

"Um, I . . . . That is, I . . . ." 

"Go on and spit it out, Takaishi," Daisuke said cheerfully, "It's not like Hikari will say 'no' to you."

"It's not . . . . " Takeru sighed and set the apple back on the tray, "Um, this is awkward." 

Understanding suddenly dawned on Daisuke, "Shit, you aren't asking her, are you? I'm sorry. I didn't think you . . . You always seemed . . . You and her . . . Shit, I've really put my foot in it." 

Hikari could hear the blood pounding in her ears. She wanted to get up from the table and run away from them; to run so far and so fast that she would leave even her pain behind her. She wanted to find a dark and solitary place where she could sit in a quiet broken only by her breathing. Yet she couldn't move, not even take her eyes away from Takeru. He looked embarrassed and miserable, while Daisuke had an expression on his face like he had shot his best friend. Only she could make everything all right again. 

"You haven't," she said hurriedly, "Really, you haven't. It's not like I . . . Takeru-kun's my best friend, and I never expected him . . . . You haven't, Daisuke-kun."

Takeru turned to her, his eyes dark with an emotion that was uncomfortably like pity, "Hikari-chan, I . . . ."

She cut him off with a bright, false laugh, "Before this gets any more awkward, I need to go to the bathroom. When I come back, we'll forget this ever happened, okay?"

"Okay," Takeru echoed, but he did not sound convinced. 

----------

TO BE CONTINUED

----------

(1) A number of Japanese teachers refer to female students as '-kun.' 

(2) "Ecchi" means "dirty, disgusting, perverted". It's a milder version of the popular "hentai." 

(3) "Doors to Summer" Drama CD. Hikari apparently says something to Daisuke to make him believe that there's no chance, and he heads off to the US to get over her. There's a translation (not mine) available at 


	4. I Don't Love You

All the characters belong to Toei, apart from the random and pointless Aoi whom I invented but about whom I don't give a toss. _Spirit Dreams Inside_ belongs to L'Arc~en~Ciel. It was the theme for the Japanese version of _Final Fantasy: The Spirits Inside. I'm also vaguely contemplating a Daiken based around the whole song. And, yes, the original lyrics are in English. ^.~ _

You can download an MP3 of it from: http:// members. tripod. com  / zentraediac/ mp3s/ Spiritdrims.zip. I've messed up the spacing so FF.net doesn't eat it. Take out all the spaces. 

And it is another short chapter from me. Sorry about that. I have two essays due in the next two weeks, and don't have any more time to write 'fic. Sadly, it's short chapters or no chapters at all at the moment. I know which I'd prefer. ^.~ 

Anyway, time to reply to your comments:

_Kara: Now how can Takeru and Hikari be worse than their brothers?_

::grins:: Notice how they were sitting together in episode 1 of the show and were separated by episode 13. I guess their endless talking and laughing must have had something to do with it. 

Daisuke? Red streaks? O.o Sorry, but I am still wondering: what's with those Japanese and their hair-dying styles?

I'd been admiring some pictures of Koyasu Takehito, and he had red streaks in his hair, and I thought it looked cute. . . . ::looks sheepish:: Besides, Dai would dye his hair, if you'll excuse the horrible pun.

_Blue Eyes Toon Dragon: __Takeru's not asking Hikari? That's a harsh blow for her... please reveal who Takeru wants to ask next chapter!_

It'll be revealed next chapter, I promise. And, if you thought that was evil, wait until you see who it is . . . . Kekekekeke.

Alan: Weird ass formatting. I think it's an FF.Net thing, because you're not the only one affected and the earlier chapters are still fine.

Yeah, it is. If you look at my website, you'll see my original HTML has normal line-spacing, but FF.net screws it up in the upload. 

Cracker: I can't see the link to the translation on your 3rd note on the bottom O.o

Blah. FF.net ate it. I'll put it here with random spacing: http:// got taito . cjb . net. Just take out all the spaces, and it'll work.

Jamie-kun: However, a few things to point out.  It's "Axises" not "axes".

::grins evilly:: I still maintain you Americans can't speak English. Or Latin. In the parts of the world where we do, the plural of 'axis' is 'axes' (said: ax-eees). 

Silver Shadow: So since this is in japan, wouldn't it be call football?

It's called 'sokka' in Japan, as I learnt from watching Adventure 02. Actually, what's weird is that we call it 'soccer' in South Africa as well. ^.~

If I haven't mentioned you, it doesn't mean that I haven't read and loved your review. Honestly, thank you all so much for taking your time to read and review my story, such as it is. I do appreciate it more than I could ever say. Arigatou gozaimasu. ^.^

-------------

**DANCING LESSONS**

**PART TWO: 'I DON'T LOVE YOU'**

"I wake from a nightmare now.

In the day it haunts me.

It slowly tears me apart

with dreams of a distant love.

I'm a wandering satellite. 

Somewhere in the wasteland

I see you -" 

Switching off the tape, Takeru made a face, "I was off on that note, wasn't I?" 

"Only if you want it to sound like the actual song," Daisuke grinned at him. 

Music was their last class of the day, and their teacher had broken them up into pairs and sent them out into the school's gardens to prepare duets. He had a feeling that it was because she could not handle their class' off-key singing at the end of a long, hot day. She had never been quite the same after Yamato had graduated. 

He sighed, "So, explain to me again why I get to sing the verses and you only come in on the choruses."

"Because you're the brother of a famous singer and I'm just the brother of his psycho groupie," he told him, stretching across him to rewind the tape a little, "Pick it up from where you were." (1)

"Yes, Motomiya-_sensei," Takeru rolled his eyes, as Daisuke pressed play and Hyde's smooth voice rose above the electronic beat of the music once again. He drummed on his legs with his fingers, his head swaying from side to side, trying to catch the rhythm: _

"Somewhere in the wasteland

I see you smiling at me,

A vision out of my dreams.

Will everything change?

Take the pain away.

Lead me with your light . . ." 

"And you were only badly off on that whole verse," Daisuke turned off the tape again and glanced over at his friend, "What's up? Even I know you don't suck as much as this."

"Nothing," Takeru looked at his hands folded in his lap, "I'm just not in the mood, I guess." 

Daisuke sighed, guessing what the trouble was. It could only be what happened at lunchtime. For the millionth time that hour, he wished he had kept his big, fat mouth shut. 

He had just been so sure that Takeru had been going to ask Hikari to the dance. 

After all, everyone knew that they were going to get together someday. Takeru would finally get the guts to tell Hikari that he loved her, or she would get fed up with waiting and let him know exactly how she felt about him. And they'd become a couple and make everyone sick with how cute they were together. 

Mimi had even started a pool on it. If they got together in three weeks time, he'd be a rich man. 

"Go talk to Hikari already. She and Aoi are sitting beneath the big tree around the side." 

"Um, do you think that's a good idea, Daisuke-kun?" Takeru asked hesitantly, "I mean..."

"Idiot! Of course it's a good idea!" he told him, "Unless you want Utada-_sensei_ to fail us, because you gotta know how much she expects of you." 

Takeru winced. Their music-teacher pushed him much harder than the rest of the class, signing him up for extra lessons, insisting he tried out for school musicals, asking him to give solos at all the concerts. She refused to accept that he didn't have any interest in becoming a singer like his brother; that he would rather be on the basketball court than on the stage. Daisuke sometimes had the feeling that, ever since Yamato had graduated, she had been counting off the days until she had his younger brother in her class.

"So, go talk to Hikari," Daisuke repeated, "I'll practise the chorus while you're gone." 

"Okay," Takeru got to his feet, dusting his trousers clean and readjusting his shirt, "And remember that it's everything from 'Heading for the sun', not just the 'Spirit dreams inside' bits . . . ." 

"Yeah, yeah," he waved his hand dismissively, "Just go kiss and make up with Hikari-chan already." 

Frowning, "Kiss and make up?"

Daisuke grinned sheepishly at him, "Sorry. Bad choice of words. You know what I meant." 

Shaking his head, Takeru walked away from him towards the path that led around the side of the school. Daisuke cleared his throat, then turned on the tape again: 

"Heading for the sun.

Leave the sadness behind.

Crossing oceans dry. . . ."  

****

"Hey, Hikari, Takeru-kun's coming your way," Aoi hissed, turning off the tape of music to which they were listening in preparation for their duet. 

Hikari looked up from her photocopied lyrics, and felt her heart thud painfully in her chest when she saw him. He was so beautiful, like a fairytale prince who captured the hearts of all who saw him. In the midday light, his bare head shone golden, and his eyes were the pure, transparent blue at the heart of a flame. He moved with a long-limbed, loose grace that was still not quite ease or confidence. 

She knew she should have felt lucky to have him as a best friend, but she didn't. She wanted to run her hands through his messy hair; press her lips against his ones; see the radiance of his smile and know it was entirely for her. She wanted him to love her as much as she loved him, but he had made it perfectly clear that he didn't. He only saw her as his best friend; as little Yagami Hikari whom he had known since they both had been eight years old. She blinked back the tears that rose to her eyes at the thought. There was no point crying about something that she could not change. 

"Aoi-san. Hikari," he dipped his head to them, "I'm sorry to disturb you." 

"No problem," Aoi said brightly, "I need to get a drink of water, anyway. I can't sing another note until I do."

Leaping to her feet and straightening her skirt, she glanced over her shoulder to wink significantly at Hikari. She smiled faintly back at her, although it felt like the other girl had slid something sharp and brilliant into her heart. All of her friends believed that Takeru was in love with her. They were forever finding hidden significance in everything he said or did around her. If he lent her a pencil, sat next to at lunch or grinned at her after making a basket in a match, they took it as proof of his undying affections. She had laughed at them, calling them ridiculous, wanting to believe them all the same. 

There was an uncomfortable silence between them, while they both waited for Aoi to go into the school. 

"Hey, Hikari."

"Takeru-kun," she greeted him, and continued before he had a chance to say anything, "I can guess why you're here. I just want you to know . . . I meant what I said to you at lunch about not expecting you to take me to the dance. I really didn't think we were going together or anything." 

"Are you sure?" he asked, "I mean, we . . . we can go together, if you want . . . ."

"I'm sure," she tried to keep her voice light, but it sounded fake to her own ears, "You should go with the girl you like, not with me. Anything else would be stupid." 

"Okay, but . . ." Takeru exhaled, awkwardly shifting position, "But . . . I just want to know one thing, before . . . before I can forget this happened. Do you . . . do you have any feelings for me, Hikari?" 

Everything seemed to still to silence within Hikari, as she looked up at her best friend. For three years, she had been waiting for the day when Takaishi Takeru would ask her that question. Lying in her bed at night, she had planned elaborate speeches in which she had declared her love for him, in which she had told him about the thousand small and subtle ways in which he had changed her. Now, she couldn't remember a single word of them. She only knew that what she said next would be some of the most important words she had ever spoken. 

If she said 'yes,' Takeru would find some way to love her. He would set aside all his own hopes and dreams, convincing himself that it was better to give them up rather than to hurt her. In time, it might even work out for the best. He might grow to love her for real, and forget that there had ever been another girl he had wanted. 

If she said 'no,' she might never have another chance with him. Takeru was not a person who loved lightly. When he gave his heart to someone, she knew he would not take it back soon. And there wasn't a girl in the school who wouldn't leap at the chance to go to the dance with him. 

Yet oddly, for the first time all day, her pathway was clear. She knew what she had to do.

She lifted her eyes to meet his and held them steady, "No, Takeru, I don't. Not those sort of feelings, anyway. You're my closest friend, but I don't love you."

The expression on Takeru's face was unreadable. A veil seemed to have dropped down behind his beautiful eyes, concealing all emotion from her. Slowly, however, he nodded, "Good. Good. Because I feel the same way. And I'm glad . . . I'm really glad we were able to work this out, before things got any weirder between us." 

"Uh huh," it cost her an effort, but she managed to smile up at him, "So am I, Takeru-kun."

****

TO BE CONTINUED

****

(1) Actually, I really love Kiuchi Reiko's voice. She sounds so . . . Daisuke when she sings, and "Goggle Boy" is just a great song in general. And everyone should know how I feel about Yamamoto Taisuke's voice by now, considering I seem to mention it in every 'fic I write. Seriously, I'm considering selling all my wordly goods just so I can go to Tokyo and see him perform at the 'We Love Digimon Music' concert. All my other favourite Digimon seiyuu are performing in it too - Kamiya Hiroshi, Takeuchi Junko, Kazama Yuuto . . . . It's enough to make a girl try and break the law and ask for money for her fanfiction. O.o


	5. Complications

Kara: Hee hee. Daisuke's amusing when he's being thwarted. Besides, you just know that pessimist Jyou has money on Takeru and Hikari not getting together in the end. Jyou deserves to win for once. ^.^;

Rilian: Love the idea! If you ever wanted to write it, I'd be more than happy to beta or even co-write it with you. I've just vowed I'm not going to start another 'fic until I've finished at least once of my other ones. O.o;

Blue Eyes Toon Dragon: I always put Hikari and Takeru through hell. I'm sure it's bad for my karma. ^.^;

Silver Warrior: You'll see who it is . . . In this chapter . . . Doooooooooooooom!

Ayumi: Gomen gomen! Nihonjin ja nai. Demo, anata de isshou ni kakeru ne! ^.^

Qwi-Qux: Definitely! They both have the annoying habit of living for another people, which may catch up with them in this 'fic. Sometimes, you do have to be a little selfish. 

Everyone else: Hontou ni arigatou! Thank you for all your reviews! I hope you'll continue to be as happy with this story. And my apologies for its embarrassing shortness. My life is INSANE at the moment, but I didn't want to leave updating it for another few weeks.

-------------

**DANCING LESSONS**

**PART 3**

**COMPLICATIONS**

"_Kaa-san _says you can stay for dinner, if you want," Takeru told Hikari, as he unlocked the door to his apartment and opened it for her, "However, it'll probably just be whatever she can microwave, because she has two articles due by tomorrow." 

"It has to be better than my _Kaa-san's cooking. That's just whatever she can burn," Hikari made a face, going ahead of him into the hallway and kneeling to unbuckle her school-shoes. She set them neatly against the wall in line with Ms Takaishi's slippers. _

Laughing, Takeru pushed the door closed behind them, then bent to take off his own shoes. She noticed with amusement that he was wearing mismatching socks. One was white, while the other had green stripes. He must have gotten dressed in the dark that morning, or maybe it was his own little rebellion against the uniform they had to wear. 

"So, we're okay, Hikari?" 

She looked at him in confusion, "What do you mean?" 

He straightened up with a sigh and stretched his arms out in front of him, "I mean, things between us have been kinda weird today with what happened at lunch and then . . . with everything else. I just want to check we're really okay, because you're my best friend and I really don't want to lose you over something stupid like this." 

Hikari winced inwardly. Every time he mentioned what good friends they were, it just served as a reminder that he did not see her as anything more, that he was in love with somebody else. It would have almost been easier if he didn't care for her, if she was just another girl in his class who loved him from a distance.

Not wanting him to guess her true feelings, she put a smile on her face, "Takeru-kun, we're fine. You know how Daisuke-kun always gets the wrong idea about everything, especially about my feelings. Now, can we forget about this whole stupid thing?"

"Uh huh," he grinned back at her, "This has been one of the more awkward days of my life. And I thought the worst that could happen would be that I'd stand on your feet a thousand or so times." 

"You still have the chance," she replied with a little laugh, glad for an opportunity to change the subject. It was going to be hard enough getting through the rest of the afternoon - dancing in his arms and knowing he was thinking about somebody else - without having to talk about it, "We better get started on your dancing lessons. I think we might need all the time we have." 

He nodded his agreement, "Definitely, but can I shower and change before we do?"

At another time, she might have seen some significance in that. Her friends certainly would have. It would have been yet another of the hundred, small signs that Takeru was in love with her, like the way he walked her to school or the way he always sat next to her in class or the way he bought her chocolates every White Day. She pushed the thought away from her. She could not afford to dwell on hopes that had proved false. (1)

"Of course," she replied, "I packed some clothes too. If you don't mind, I'll get changed in your room while you're showering." 

"No problem. I've got the new _Shounen Jump Weekly too, if you want to read it. I know how much you like _Naruto_. And Sasuke . . . ." he trailed off with a significant smile. _

Sticking out her tongue at him, "Better than liking Inoooo Piiiiig." (2)

"I do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!" 

"Do not!" Takeru smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck, "Uh, when did we become eight again?"

Hikari blushed, "Sorry." 

"I better go shower," he said, disappearing into his room and reemerging with a pile of clothes in his arms, "I won't be long." 

"No problem," she replied, as he closed the bathroom door behind him. A few moments later, she heard the sound of water running and Takeru's surprisingly sweet alto rise above it. She recognised the song as the duet that he and Daisuke had to perform for music class. She smiled to herself: Takeru always said that he was better off singing in the shower while Yamato handled the concerts. 

Thinking that she should better take the opportunity to change, she went through to his room. It was as tidy as Yamato's was messy. There was not a single item out of place in the entire room. His basketball was rolled into a corner; his hat was hung over a lamp; his bag had its own hook behind the door. His schoolbooks were neatly arranged on a shelf above his desk, while the other bookshelves were occupied by his collection of novels and manga. He had even organised them in alphabetical order by author. There was no doubt about it: Takeru was a neat-freak who would have gone insane if he had to share a room with his brother like she did. 

Putting her bag on his bed, she removed a strappy, pink sundress and made a face as she noticed how wrinkled it was. She should have done the sensible thing and packed shorts and a t-shirt, but Takeru had once said that the dress looked good on her and love was always the death of common sense. She wondered if he would notice it, if he would understand why she had chosen it, even though she knew it was too late for her. He loved someone else. She was just his friend. The stark finality of that thought brought tears to her eyes, but she blinked them back hastily. She had to be strong; she could not afford to break down in front of him.

After checking to see that Takeru was still singing in the shower, she unbuttoned her shirt and stuffed it into her bag. She pulled the dress over her head, then wriggled out of the short, green skirt that made up part of their uniform. It joined the shirt at the bottom of her bag. She glanced at her reflection in his mirror and was satisfied by it. 

"Now where did he put _Shounen Jump? Didn't he say it was on his desk?" she murmured to herself, casting her eyes around the room, "Ah! Found it!"_

Picking up the magazine from the table, Hikari noticed a sheet of paper lying beneath it.  It had something written on it in what she recognised as Takeru's neatest handwriting. Usually, his writing resembled that of a drunken spider that had fallen into an inkpot, but this was actually legible. She knew that she should respect her friend's privacy, but she couldn't resist the urge to peek at it. Maybe it had some clue as to whom he liked. Besides, she consoled her conscience, it couldn't be too personal if he had left it in the open for anyone to see. It was probably just a boring letter to his grandparents.

With another glance at the doorway to check that he wasn't about to come through it, she picked it up and started reading through it. 

"Dear Miyako, 

I know this is going to come as a surprise to you - it certainly came as a surprise to me - but I think I've fallen in love with you . . . ." 

The paper dropped from Hikari's trembling hands and drifted to the floor. Just when she had thought the situation couldn't get any worse, it had. . . . 

"Hikari, ready to attempt the impossible and teach me to dance?" Takeru had finished his shower and was standing in the bedroom door. His damp hair was dark; his feet were bare; he was dressed casually in a loose, red t-shirt and jeans. When he saw the letter lying at her feet, his eyes widened slightly, "Did you read that? You did! Hikari! That was private!" 

"S-sorry. I . . . I have to go," she whispered, pushing her way past him and out the front door. 

----------------------

TO BE CONTINUED

----------------------

(1) Everyone knows what White Day is? It's a day when Japanese boys and men give reciprocal presents to girls and women who have given them stuff on Valentine's Day. It's not necessarily a romantic gesture, especially not in companies where it's practically protocol to give colleagues chocolates. 

(2) Dear Ino Pig. She's the most irritating character in the universe. You can read all about her here: http:// www. narutoguide.     com/      biographies_Y.htm#yomanakaino (Again, spacing is screwed so FF.net leaves it alone!) 


	6. Talking to 'Niisan

I'm not sure how much this part accomplishes, but I'm in the middle of exams and don't have the time or energy to do anything more substantial. Besides, I really need a chapter where I just get all my ducks in a row for the rest of the story. I hope you'll still find it interesting! :)  
  
Sorry, I also meant to reply to all your comments, but ran out of time. That'll have to wait until the next chapter.  
  
DANCING LESSONS PART 4: TALKING TO NII-SAN  
  
"It rocks to have the apartment to ourselves for once," Taichi said, leaning across to kiss Sora on the mouth. She tasted wonderful - strawberry lipgloss and cool mint. At first, the kiss was soft and sweet, their mouths just touching, but her lips soon parted beneath his and it deepened. He wrapped his arms around her, running his fingers through her silky hair and down her back. Her own hands traced the muscles of his shoulders and the ridge of his spine, as if trying to memorise every line of him. Warmth spread though him like sunshine.  
  
At last, he reluctantly broke away from her and gave her a grin, "Yeah, it definitely rocks to have the apartment to ourselves."  
  
Her brown eyes sparkling with amusement, she leaned forward to kiss the tip of his nose, "I wonder why."  
  
"No mom, no dad, no Hikari," he said happily, sinking back into the sofa and putting his arm around Sora's shoulder. She snuggled closer to him with a contented sigh. She was very soft and warm, and smelt sweetly of strawberries, "Just you, me and an entire afternoon of Fushigi Yuugi Eikouden."  
  
"Does Hikari know you've borrowed it?"  
  
"And give her another opportunity to put on her Miaka voice and tease me about it? It's not like I can say I watch it for the hot chicks or anything," he made a face, "Besides, she'll never know. She's going to be at Takeru's place until tonigh. She's teaching him to dance for the thing that's happening at their school."  
  
"I see," Sora replied, lifting her eyebrows significantly, "So, one of us is about to become very, very rich?"  
  
Taichi laughed. His girlfriend had chosen this week in Mimi's "Kawaii Young Romance Pool," and wanted the extra money to buy the expensive, new tennis- racket that she had been coveting for months. He had been saving up his allowance to buy it for her for Christmas, but he doubted he would have enough money before Sora hit the veteran's circuit. She might have to be happy with another set of hairclips, he thought dubiously.  
  
"It's a little more complicated than that," he said, "Hikari thinks Takeru likes someone else, so she's probably decided to do her usual noble, self- sacrificing thing and keep quiet about how she feels about him. And you know how Takeru sucks at letting people know about his own feelings, so he's not about to say anything."  
  
"How unlike their brothers," Sora said wryly.  
  
Taichi gave her a sheepish grin. For the long months that Sora had been dating Yamato, it had felt as if there were a hollow place in his chest where his heart should have been, but he had tried to carry on as if nothing was different; as if Sora had been just another of his group of friends. There had been nothing else that he could have done. Yamato was his best friend and he had not been about to make a play for his girlfriend, even if he had stood a chance against him. He was just lucky that they had found their way together in the end. He hoped his sister would have the same fortune with Takeru.  
  
"Hikari's meant to be smarter than me," he said, only half-kidding, "And Takeru's . . . Argh. I sometimes want to shake that kid. He's about the only one in the whole of Japan who doesn't realise that he has feelings for Hikari. Even his senile, old grandmother probably knows that he's in love with her."  
  
"You've never forgiven Takaishi-san for hanging up on you, have you?" Sora muttered to herself, then smiled at him, "Well, why don't we do something about it?"  
  
"Like what? Lock them in a room until one of them spills their guts? Set them up on a romantic date? Make sure he catches a glimpse of her strawberry-patterned panties?" Taichi laughed, "Sora, this is real life. Things don't work like that." (1)  
  
Folding her arms across her chest a little sulkily, "At least I -"  
  
Whatever Sora might have said next remained unspoken as the apartment door slammed open and a sobbing Hikari ran through to the bedroom. She was wearing a crumpled, pink sundress, and only had socks on her feet. It looked as if she had run the entire way back from the Takaishi's apartment too. Her hair was plastered to her forehead, and her skin glistened with sweat.  
  
Exchanging a worried glance with Sora, Taichi went to find out what was wrong. He couldn't believe that Takeru would hurt his sister, any more than he would allow someone else to do so. If he had, he thought grimly, he would have to teach him never to do it again.  
  
When he entered the room, he found Hikari lying on her bed, her head buried in the pillow and her thin shoulders shaking. Her sobs were muffled by the fabric, but sounded no less violent or painful for that. Taichi sat next to her, rubbing her back, letting her calm down before he spoke. After a long while, her weeping began to quieten and her breathing slowed to normal  
  
"Hey, what's wrong? What happened to you? Is it something to do with Takeru?"  
  
Rolling onto her side, Hikari pulled a tissue out of the box next to her bed and blew her nose noisily. Taichi handed her another one, and she wiped her eyes with it. When she finally spoke, her voice was thick with tears: "H-he's in love w-with Miyako, Nii-san. I-I found a l-letter to her on his d-desk and he c-caught me reading it and n-now he hates me."  
  
Fresh tears welled up in Hikari's eyes and spilled down her cheeks. Taking another tissue from the box, Taichi wiped her face clean, as if she still were the little child that he had looked after for their mother. Then, her biggest problem had been losing her whistle or not being able to tie her own shoes. He wished he could solve these new problems as easily for her.  
  
"It's all going to be okay, Hikari," Taichi said gently, "I'm sure Takeru doesn't hate you. He's probably beating himself up right now for getting mad at you over the letter. And how sure are you that he likes Miyako? I mean, they've never struck me as being more than friends."  
  
"I-I'm sure. H-he said so in the letter," she sniffed, "I don't know what I'm g-going to do. Miyako's my friend and Takeru's my b-best friend and . . . Everything's such a h-horrible mess now."  
  
"Do you think Miyako will say 'yes' to him, if he asks her out on a date?"  
  
"I-I don't know. She knows I-I like him and I h-hope not, b-but . . . ." she lifted her head to look at him, "Nii-san, it's M-Miyako. You know her. S-she would love to have s-someone like Takeru as a b-boyfriend, even if she doesn't love him h-himself."  
  
Taichi nodded his agreement. Miyako was a sweet girl, but she would do just about anything to be popular. He remembered the shock that he had gotten when he had seen her on her first day of middle school. Her lilac hair had been cut into a sleek and stylish bob, while she had swopped her glasses for a pair of contact lenses that showed off her beautiful, brown eyes. She had been wearing the slightest hint of make-up too, and it had made her look years older. However, what had really given him pause was the way she had worn their uniform - the short skirt, the carelessly undone buttons of her blouse, everything had been calculated to show the maximum skin possible without seeming cheap. There was no doubt about it. Miyako craved popularity in the same way that a drug-addict might crave a fix, and dating Takaishi Takeru would be an easy way to achieve it.  
  
He wasn't surprised that his younger friend was the most popular boy in the school. After all, by most kids' shallow standards, Takeru had everything going for him. He had the same blue-golden, good looks of Yamato, but was going to be even more handsome than his brother if Mimi was to be believed. He was good at sports, slipping easily into the position of basketball captain when the old one had graduated. However, what set Takeru apart from the rest of the popular crowd was that he was absolutely unaware of being a part of it. He had no ego at all from what Taichi could tell. He hung out with his old friends; wore what he wanted to wear; spoke his mind without fear of the consequences; was equally nice to everyone. He was a genuinely sweet guy, and Taichi could see why his sister loved him so much. (2)  
  
"Nii-san, what am I g-going to do?" Hikari said quietly.  
  
"It might take some time, but things will work out the way they are supposed to," he said at last, "Takeru might end up dating Miyako for a while, he might even believe he loves her, but he'll soon realise that you're the one he wants to be with."  
  
"W-what if I'm not?"  
  
"You are," Taichi smiled at her, "Trust Nii-san. Everything's going to be all right."  
  
-------------  
  
TO BE CONTINUED  
  
-------------  
  
(1) The strawberry-patterned panties is a reference to a manga called Ichigo 100%. I haven't read it myself, but it's about a boy who catches a glimpse of a girl's strawberry-patterned panties and realises that she's his soul-mate. How deep and meaningful. O.o;  
  
(2) Looking again at the adult Chosen, I still think that Takeru turned out hotter than his brother. Very yummy. ^.~ 


	7. Miyako Gets Sneaky

Yoshi! Time to reply to some of your reviews! I warn you that I've just taken flu tablets and am feeling . . . cheerful . . . 

Takari's Baybee: What can I say . . . ? I was in a Taiora mood that night. I even wrote about half of one, before I lost interest in it. I have the same attention span as my kitten sometimes. O.o;;

Azn Angel Hikari: Of course Takeru is! What is up with Yamato's hair when he's an adult? It's like he's lost all his skill with the comb and gel . . . Kowaiiii . . . 

Jamie-kun: Nope, I just fell into another cliché for this chapter. Kekekeke. And you're quite right about the alto\tenor thing, although his voice is unnaturally high in 'Focus.' I can sing the song without straining my voice at all, and I'm an alto. Admittedly, though, he is off on most of the higher notes in the song. . . . O.o; 

Cherry Blossom: I'm so tempted to buy Ichigo 100%. It sounds too funny for words . . . I must be having a lapse of good taste.

Avaria: Everyone always tells me I put Takeru and Hikari through hell. It sucks to be my favourite characters, doesn't it? ^.~ 

Also, I agree that Hikari wouldn't normally have taken a look at a private letter, but her curiosity got the better of her. I can't say I would have resisted if I'd been in a similar situation. As to Takeru's letter, he's not the best when it comes to telling people about his feelings face-to-face. Admittedly, that interpretation of his character hinges almost entirely on his image-song where he keeps breaking off in the middle of sentences and saying "I just can't ask . . ." He's soooooooo cute. 

Alan: True, but Taichi always has been a little crass. 

Everyone else: Thank you. It's your reviews that keep me writing when I'm feeling flu-ridden and miserable. I just hope that this chapter keeps you reading. ^.~  

**Dancing Lessons**

**Part 6**

**'Miyako Gets Sneaky'**

"Yagamiiiiiiiiiii Hikariiiiiiiiiiii. Wheeere are youuuuuuuuu?" 

Lying on her bed with an unread book open beside her, Hikari felt her stomach lurch when she heard Miyako's voice. She knew it wasn't her friend's fault that Takeru loved her, that it should have changed nothing between them, but she still didn't want to see her. The pain of discovering it was her he loved was still too raw and fresh, and she didn't quite trust herself to keep her emotions under control. 

For a moment, she thought about pretending to be asleep until Miyako left, but knew that her friend would have no compunctions about waking her. Good manners were nothing compared to good gossip in Miyako's opinion. 

Besides, she was a terrible actor. She was always chosen as the tree or the fifth sister in their school's productions, any part where she didn't have to do more than stand on the stage and be quiet. Miyako would guess that she was faking it in a second, and would just be more suspicious of her. 

No, she decided, it was best to get it over with as quickly and as simply as possible. Time wouldn't make it hurt any less. 

"I'm here!" she called at last, sitting up straighter and wrapping her arms around her legs.

"Geez, take your time!" Miyako grumbled as she came through the bedroom door. 

Looking at her, Hikari felt even worse than before. When Miyako had gone into middle school, she had decided that the only way to be popular was to change her image. The thick-rimmed glasses and hippie-chic clothes had been discarded for contact lenses and designer labels. Today, she was wearing a pair of tea-stained jeans and a white, chiffon top that left her stomach bare. A diamond flashed at her belly-button. 

Why had she been so surprised to discover that Takeru loved her? Any guy with eyes would, and her best friend was hardly immune to the charms of a pretty girl. She couldn't see any other reason for his short-lived crush on Catherine the China Doll with her blue eyes, blonde curls and complete lack of any personality. He had started off by writing her long e-mails in French every day, but those had soon been cut down to a shop-bought card on her birthday and Christmas. As he had said to her, she had nothing interesting to say in return, and he was sick of hearing about her pet poodle. 

However, the voice of memory whispered that he hadn't thought much of Miyako's make-over. When she'd asked him what he thought about it, he had ummed and erred around the issue in typical Takeru fashion, but had eventually confessed that he hated it. He didn't see why Miyako thought she had to become someone else to be liked, especially when she had friends who accepted her for what she was. 

Yet time passed and people changed. The girl in front of her was proof of that.

"So-o?" Miyako said eagerly, sitting on Hikari's bed and giving her an expectant look, "I want all the gossip. Was I right or not? Did he ask you to the dance? Did he kiss you? Are you a couple now?" 

Hikari did not know what to say in reply. She could never tell Miyako the truth about what happened that afternoon – that it was _her_ he wanted to take the dance, to kiss, to date. It was bad enough that she had already invaded her best friend's privacy in a moment of weakness and stupidity; she could not tell the other girl how he felt about her. 

Takeru would never forgive her. 

Besides, if she were honest with herself, some small, selfish part of her hoped that he would never tell her; that he would leave the letter unsent and the words unspoken. She could almost cope with him having feelings for Miyako, but she did not know how she would handle him dating her. Even now, being around either of them was like dancing on splinters of broken glass, smiling while she was bleeding. 

Miyako evidently interpreted her silence as reticence, because she grinned and clapped her hands together: "I knew it! I knew he was going to use this as an excuse to ask you to the dance!" 

"Miyako . . . ." Hikari rubbed a hand across her eyes, "It's not me he wants to ask. It's . . . it's another girl." 

"What? You've got to be kidding!" she exclaimed, "Are you sure? How did you find that out?" 

"I-it doesn't matter," she replied hesitantly, "I just .  . . I'm sure it's not me." 

A speculative expression coming to her pretty face, Miyako leaned back against the wall and steepled her fingers in front of her, "Guys can be dense at times. You sometimes have to help them realize how much they like you. I'd normally say make the first move and ask him out yourself, but that won't work if Takeru thinks he likes someone else. We're going to have to be more sneaky . . . ." 

"Miyako, please don't . . . ." Hikari felt too tired to deal with another of her friend's hare-brained schemes. She wanted to crawl into bed, pull the covers over her and lie there in the dark until the dance was over and her life could go back to normal, "He's made his decision, and . . . I have to accept it."

"That's your problem right there," Miyako sighed, "You're too . . . too . . . too Hikari! Look, Ken and me didn't work out in the end, but I've never regretted the time we spent together and that wouldn't have happened if I'd waited for him to realize how he felt about me. You want to be with Takeru and I know deep down he wants to be with you, so do something about it! Otherwise, you'll be the bridesmaid at his wedding in ten years time, standing next to his new wife and thinking it should have been you . . . ." she took a deep breath, her cheeks turning red, "Sorry about the speech, but it's true!" 

Hikari was silent for a long time, looking at her friend. She had a sudden vision of an older Miyako walking down the aisle, slim and beautiful in a white dress with flowers in her hands and hair. Takeru was waiting for her at the other end, even more handsome than usual in his tuxedo, a proud smile on his face. She shook her head and the image dissolved, "So, what do I do?" 

"I hoped you would ask!" she gleefully clapped her hands together, "Well, we all know how jealous Takeru gets." 

"Takeru?" she gave her a weak smile, "Aren't you thinking of Daisuke?"

"Hey, I know you're biased, but that rivalry was never one-sided," Miyako said wryly, "Besides, I saw how he looked when Wallace kissed you on the bridge that day, and it wasn't just because he was being too forward." (1)

Hikari blushed at the memory. That had been the first time a boy had ever kissed her. She knew she should have been shocked by what he had done, but she was ashamed to admit that she had enjoyed it. She had even been half-in-love with Wallace for weeks afterwards, walking around in a happy daze, daydreaming about kissing him again. It had lasted until Mimi had told her how he had been hitting on her and every other girl that he met. She had scrubbed her cheek with disinfectant that afternoon.

However, now that she thought back to it, Takeru's behaviour had been a little odd on their trip back to Japan. He had barely spoken two words to her on the plane, only put on his earphones, turned the volume up high and stared out the window at the clouds streaming past beneath them. Had he been jealous of Wallace kissing her? Or had it been his kissing Miyako that had bothered him so much? 

"So," Miyako continued triumphantly, "You just need to ask another boy to the dance. It won't take long for Takeru to realize how he feels about you." 

"But that's low! I couldn't just use somebody like that!" 

She rolled her eyes, "You can't use a user, dear."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, we all know Wallace is an exchange student in Kanagawa this year," she explained with a wicked grin, "You could ask him. It would make Takeru doubly jealous remembering how he kissed you." 

Hikari sighed and leaned back against her pillow, "Miyako, I really don't like this. It just seems wrong to me."

"Well, think about it this way," she replied, "You need a date for the dance and all the guys in our school are taken, unless you want to go with Teppei who picks his nose or Takeshi who sells porn at lunchtime. Wallace is one of the few other boys you know, so it makes sense to ask him."

"I could just stay home," she suggested hopefully. 

"No, I won't let you," she shook her head vigourously, "It's your first proper dance and I won't let you miss it, because Takeru's too dense to realize he loves you."

"O-okay," Hikari felt too tired to argue. It would be less trouble to go along with what her friend wanted. The dance would only last a couple of hours, whereas Miyako would continue bugging her for days to come. She would go with Wallace, let him twirl her around the dance-floor a few times, make polite conversation with the others, and then it would all be over and her life could get back to normal, "Okay, I'll phone Wallace tonight and ask him."

"Great!" Miyako winked and flashed the bingo sign at her, "Trust me. This is going to work perfectly. . . ." 

------------------

DUM DUM DAH! TO BE CONTINUED! 

------------------

NOTES:

(1) I've been translating movie 3 for fun. I had to bring that in somewhere. ^.^;


	8. Life's Ironic

DANCING LESSONS CHAPTER 6 LIFE'S IRONIC  
  
"Was I right about that on you or what?" Miyako asked with a smug smile, as Hikari came to stand in front of the mirror in the little boutique. Her eyes widened in shock as she saw herself. Her reflection was a graceful and sophisticated stranger in a silver-silky top and a short skirt embroidered with jasmine. They clung to her new curves, accentuating the swell of her breasts and her shapely dancer's legs. She looked sixteen at least, more beautiful than she could have thought possible. If Takeru saw her in this, she thought in amazement, he would have to love her.  
  
"Can you see Kaa-san letting me out of the house in this?" she turned to her friend, "It's a little . . . revealing."  
  
"That's kinda the point," Miyako flipped her hair over her shoulder and made a face at the mirror, "I look terrible in this, don't I?"  
  
"You look beautiful," she replied honestly. Miyako did look beautiful in the sort of tight, black dress that only she would have had the courage to wear. It was a halter neck that plunged low behind and left her back bare, apart from the complicated lacings that traced a spider web across it.  
  
Hikari was a little shocked to see she had a tattoo of a butterfly on one of her shoulder blades, and it didn't look like one of the washable ones that came with bubblegum. That was new, just like everything else about her friend. She could hardly believe that this was the same girl who had gone with her to the Digital World, who had confided to her that she wanted to be just like Koushirou-sempai, with whom she had spent hours giggling in the dark at sleepovers. She seemed so confident, so free, so . . . grown- up.  
  
Hikari adjusted her own skirt, feeling uncomfortably like a little girl dressing up in her mother's clothes. How did she think she could compete with Miyako? How did she imagine that Takeru would have eyes for anyone else but her? She had been an idiot thinking that pretty clothes and make- up could ever imitate what seemed to come naturally to the other girl.  
  
She felt tears come to her eyes and she blinked them back fiercely. There was no point crying for something that had never been, for someone that she had never lost. Takeru would still be her best friend; she would just have to content herself with that.  
  
"Anyway, I know how to get around the whole parent issue," her friend shrugged, adjusting the skirt so it sat better on her hips, "You can sleep over at my place that night, if you don't mind sleeping on the couch. Too many Inoues and too few beds, I'm afraid!"  
  
"Hey, I'm used to it. I always end up on the couch when Yamato or one of the other guys stays the night," she laughed weakly, glad for the distraction from her thoughts, "So, should we pay for our clothes and then get something to drink at the coffee shop?"  
  
"Great idea! There's something I want to talk to you about, anyway," Miyako gave her a mysterious smile and swept past her into the changing room.  
  
-----------------------  
  
"So, come on, give me all the dirt on Wallace!" Inoue Miyako said eagerly, leaning forward in her seat and cupping her hands around her cappuccino. Through the rising steam from the cup, she reminded Hikari of a fortune- teller from an old movie, her purple hair falling forward like a veil and her eyes a mystery. She remembered her friend's cryptic comment in the boutique and felt a little shiver of premonition pass down her spine.  
  
"There's no dirt to give," she replied, sipping at her coffee. It was too hot and burnt her lips, but it gave her a moment to marshall her thoughts. She had been so low and blue about Takeru that night that she could barely remember her conversation with Wallace, other than that he had only paused from flirting with her to flatter her. Three years ago, he might have succeeded, but she saw him for what he was now, "Mimi-san gave me his number in Japan, after a long speech about what a Casanova he was. I phoned him and he said he'd be happy to take me to the dance. He's going to catch a train from Kanagawa and stay over with some friends of his in Tokyo that night."  
  
"Not with you?" Miyako giggled, "I was sure he'd ask."  
  
"Miyako!" Hikari felt heat rush to her cheeks. Her friend could be shockingly outspoken at times, "Ecchi yo!"  
  
"Just teasing," she winked at her, then leaned back in her chair to look at her, "Anyway, I'm glad you've got a date. Wallace is a big sweetie. You two will have fun together at the dance, even if Operation: Dumb Blond fails."  
  
"Operation: Dumb Blond?" Hikari laughed, "Miyako!"  
  
"Every good operation needs a codename, and Takeru has been very dumb blond about you recently."  
  
Hikari decided not to dignify that with a reply, but asked instead, "So, who are you taking?"  
  
"Ah, that's the something I wanted to tell you. I know you probably won't approve of it, but . . . you'll thank me for it someday."  
  
"What do you mean?" The words seemed to stick on Hikari's lips. The same vague feeling of dread seemed to rise inside her, like smoke clouding the sky in the distance. She wished she could freeze that moment and keep it suspended forever, so that she could avoid living the ones that were to follow.  
  
"Well, I was thinking about your problem last night and it occurred to me that we weren't fighting the battle on all fronts," Miyako steepled her fingers in front of her in her best imitation of a veteran general, "We've got attack with you and Wallace, but we don't have defense. What if Takeru takes the girl he likes to the dance? He'll spend the whole evening focussed on her to the exclusion of the hotness that is you. Simple problems call for simple solutions," she smiled smugly, "We all know Takeru's incapable of saying no to anyone - well, anyone except maybe Daisuke - so get a girl to ask him that he doesn't like. He'll take her and spend the rest of the evening wishing he was with you . . . ."  
  
"And the girl is . . . ?" Hikari asked, although she already knew the answer to the question. She wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry at the irony of fate. All of Miyako's elaborate, carefully planned schemes were going to bring about exactly what they had been trying to prevent.  
  
"Never say that I'm not a true friend, Yagami Hikari," she sighed theatrically, "I asked him, and he said 'yes'. I'm going with Takeru to the dance . . . ."  
  
------------------  
  
DUM DUM DAH! TO BE CONTINUED!  
  
------------------ 


	9. Two Boys

Everything belongs to me! Really! I swear! So you can give me lots and lots of money! And presents! And choco . . . Eeep! ::runs away from Toei's corporate lawyers::  
  
I swear this story gets more contrived by the chapter. It's such fun to write. ^_^;;  
  
DANCING LESSONS PART 7 TWO BOYS  
  
"It's almost six. Our dates will be here soon," Hikari called, hoping Miyako could hear her above the water running in the bathroom. The older girl had been in there for almost an hour, doing . . . well, she didn't want to know what. She didn't understand how it could take anyone so long to take a shower. She herself had been ready for half-an-hour and was now sitting on Miyako's bed, trying to remain absolutely still so as not to wrinkle her silky skirt. Among other things, it had given her a lot of time to think that she would rather be at home, curled up in front of a DVD in her pyjamas with a bowl of popcorn.  
  
"Get comfortable. She'll be at least another half-an-hour, if only to make the guys wait," Momoe said wryly. Miyako's older sister was lying on the other bed and flipping through an old fashion magazine. She was one of Jun's best friends, and Hikari knew her from the times she had been around the Motomiya apartment at the same time as the Chosen. She had kept on teasing poor Daisuke about his crush on her, "I've taught her too well."  
  
She laughed politely, "Well, she might have to stall more than half-an-hour in that case. Takeru-kun's late for everything. He always gets extra homework from all our teachers, because he's never on time for classes."  
  
"So tell me something," Momoe threw her magazine onto the floor and rolled over onto her side to look at Hikari, "How badly do you want to scratch Miyako's eyes out right now? I know she says she's doing it to keep him away from other girls, but . . . you got to know that she loves the idea of being seen on the arm of the so-called prince of Odaiba Middle School."  
  
"Momoe-san!" Hikari exclaimed in horror. She knew she would never get used to how outspoken all the Inoues were, "We aren't . . . . I mean, Takeru and I are just friends. We don't see each other that way."  
  
She trailed off, biting her bottom lip and tasting the powdery bitterness of the lipstick that she had borrowed from her friend. It was a lie that she knew she would have to get used to repeating, but it had not gotten any easier yet.  
  
Momoe rolled her eyes expressively, "Come on. That's not what Miyako says. She says that you've had a crush on him since you were eight."  
  
"Well, Miyako doesn't know everything," she snapped, "If she knew anything about anyone, she never, ever would have asked Takeru-kun to the dance tonight."  
  
The instant the words left her mouth, she wished that she could take them back. It was bad enough that she had betrayed Takeru's confidence by looking through his private letters without telling anyone else what he had written in them! She still could see the hurt, angry expression in his eyes when he had come through to his bedroom and seen her holding his letter in her hands. It was the first time that she had felt a distance between them, so terrifyingly wide that no bridge could span it or words reach the other side.  
  
Worse still, Daisuke said that Momoe was the biggest gossip in Jun's class, the last person he would have trusted with any secret. It would be all over Odaiba in a matter of days, passed through the invisible network of school friends and family members that connected the district as efficiently as the Internet did the world.  
  
Hikari felt sick at the thought of how furious Takeru would be when he found out about it, and it wouldn't be long before he did. Even if it didn't reach him some other way, Yamato was in the same class as Momoe at Odaiba High, and he wouldn't be able to resist teasing his little brother about his crush. He would never speak to her again, and she couldn't blame him for it - she was the worst friend in the world.  
  
Momoe sat up on her bed, her eyes bright, "You have to be kidding me!! Takeru's in love with Miyako!?"  
  
"You can't tell anyone, Momoe-san," she pleaded, even though she knew it was futile, "I definitely shouldn't have told you."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. My lips are sealed," she waved her hand airily, "So, tell me more about it . . . ."  
  
The doorbell saved Hikari from the necessity of having to reply. Seeing that it was only ten-to-six by her watch, it had to be Wallace come to pick her up for the dance. Takeru was still probably sitting in front of his computer, typing away at a new story in blissful ignorance of the time. He was endlessly hopeful when it came to the time, thinking that he could get through half-an-hour's worth of eating, dressing, packing and walking to school in all of ten minutes.  
  
"I'll get it. It's probably Wallace-kun."  
  
She jumped off Miyako's bed, not caring about the damage she might have done to her silk skirt, and ran to the front door of the apartment. One of her sandals came off in the hall and she kicked it off impatiently, hopping the rest of the way.  
  
"Coooming . . ." she called, turning the key in the lock. She had not seen Wallace for three years and she wondered what he looked like now. She remembered him as being handsome in the way that she had once imagined all American boys would be, with his corn-gold hair and prairie-sky eyes. There had been a sweetness about him too - a kind of childish mischievousness - that she had liked very much. If her luck held, she thought glumly, he would be one of those boys who turned ugly when they turned thirteen. She swung the door open, "Hi! Did you have a good trip?"  
  
"Eh, yeah," Takeru rubbed the back of his neck, a puzzled expression on his face, "But I don't think I'd call walking up one flight of steps a trip, Hikari."  
  
Hikari was too shocked to be embarrassed. She had always known that Takeru was good-looking, but the boy standing in front of her could have been something out of a magazine. He was dressed simply in a white, linen shirt and black trousers that suited him better than anything fancier would have. It made his skin look more golden and his eyes bluer. His normally messy hair was no less messy than usual, but there was a careful stylishness about it that suggested Yamato had been busy with the gel.  
  
"You . . . uh . . . you're . . . early," she stammered, "I didn't think . . . it'd be . . . you."  
  
"Nii-san," he sighed, "He said I shouldn't keep Miyako-san waiting. He said girls always liked to be the late ones."  
  
Nervously adjusting her skirt, "Umm, no danger of that. She's not out of the shower yet."  
  
"Oh well," she shrugged, "At least, I can hang out with you while I wait for her. It's not like I'm in a hurry to make an idiot of myself at that dance."  
  
She gave him a slightly awkward smile, relieved that he seemed to have forgiven her. It was always easier to apologise to someone when you knew it would be accepted, "Nee, Takeru-kun, I'm sorry about the other day. It was very wrong of me to read that letter."  
  
"And I shouldn't have gotten so mad at you. Stupid temper," he smiled back at her and it was like the sun coming out after a month of rain, "It wasn't like it was anything personal or private. I should have told you about it, actually. I could have used your help, because it was a pain to write . . . ."  
  
"What do you mean?" she asked in confusion. She hadn't thought that Takeru would be so blasé about the love-letter that he had written to Miyako. After all, what could be more personal than telling someone how you felt about them? And why would he have found it a pain to do so? She remembered how he had rushed home after school every day to write long e-mails to Catherine, and that had just been a stupid, little crush. If she hadn't known better, she would have believed that he didn't care whether Miyako loved him back or not.  
  
"Huh? Didn't you read the whole letter?"  
  
"No, just the opening part where you . . . you told Miyako you loved her," she looked at her shoes, not trusting herself to meet his gaze. She could already feel the tears rising in her own eyes, and blinked them back before he could see. She was so tired of crying, so tired of the pain of knowing that he loved someone else. Sometimes, she wished that they were eight again and everything between them was simple, but life only ever led one way and it was not back into the past.  
  
"What?" he laughed, "Hikari, I think you're . . . ."  
  
"Hiii!" a cheerful voice called in English, cutting off whatever Takeru had been about to say. The two friends turned to see a boy walking down the corridor towards them. Tall, slim and handsome, he moved with the easy confidence of someone who knew that he was all those things and more. He was dressed in a pair of tight, black trousers beneath a sky-blue shirt cut in Chinese fashion. A silver earring flashed in his left ear.  
  
When he reached them, he winked at Hikari, before taking her hand in his and kissing it, "Yeah, you were definitely worth making the trip from Kanagawa."  
  
Wallace had arrived.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED . . . 


	10. Takeru's Problem

Yatta! I'm on holiday at last and intend to spend a good part of it finishing up some of my stories. This is one of them. ^_^  
  
Warning: This chapter contains scenes of teenage angst, bad fashion and gratuitous punning.  
  
DANCING LESSONS PART 8 TWO BOYS  
  
"Wallace, it was so cool of you to rent a limo," Miyako sighed happily, stretching her legs out in front of her. Beside her, Takeru rolled his eyes. He was staring moodily out of the window, his chin propped up on one hand. He had hardly spoken a word since Wallace had arrived, and the little that he had said had been monosyllabic. Hikari wondered what was wrong with him. It wasn't like Takeru to be quiet and withdrawn.  
  
"It's an American tradition. Besides, my beautiful date deserves the best," he winked at her and put his hand on her knee. Hikari gave him a slightly strained smile and removed it again. When she had invited Wallace to the dance, she had tried to make it clear to him that they were just going as friends, but something had obviously gotten lost in translation. He was treating her as if they had been dating for months. It was probably because he was American.  
  
"I don't mind walking. The school's pretty close to Miyako-chan's apartment, anyway."  
  
"But I mind if you do," he smiled at her, revealing even, white teeth, "Every princess deserves her chariot."  
  
Hikari felt her heart give a little hop in her chest. She had forgotten how sweet and charming Wallace could be, just as she had forgotten how handsome he was. If anything, the three years had only made him more good-looking, but he still had the same clear eyes and mischievous smile that she remembered so well from her trip to America . . . Stop it right there, she told herself firmly, you aren't in love with him. You're in love with Takeru. That's why you invited Wallace to do this dance in the first place.  
  
Takeru snorted.  
  
"Don't you agree, Takeru-kun?" Wallace asked mildly.  
  
"Yeah, sure," he replied, still staring out of the window. He reminded Hikari of Yamato in one of his lone-wolf moods. She wished that she had the right to put her arms around him and ask him what was wrong. If they had been alone, she might have done so. She had always been the one in whom he had confided. When he had failed an algebra test, when he wasn't sure if he would make the cut for the basketball team, when Yamato had started hanging out with the wrong crowd, when Catherine had proved less interesting that he had thought, she had been the one to whom he had come. Knowing that he trusted her with his secrets was the best part of being his best friend, even if she hadn't done much to prove herself worthy of them in the last few weeks.  
  
With a sigh, Hikari settled back into the white leather seats. They might have been expensive, but they certainly weren't comfortable. They stuck to the back of her thighs and made strange noises every time that she moved. She shifted in her chair.  
  
"Is everything okay, beautiful?" he slid his arm around her shoulder and she shrugged it off again. Wallace was nothing if not persistent.  
  
"It's fine, Wallace-kun," she replied with a little laugh, "This leather is just a bit . . . sticky."  
  
"It's to stop you from falling out your chariot, Princess Hikari," Takeru said, smiling at her for the first time since Wallace had arrived. It wasn't his usual sweet, open smile, but sardonic and completely humourless. She had never seen this side of him before, and she didn't think she liked it.  
  
"Snap out if it, Takeru," Miyako shook her head, "You're starting to remind me of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and I've had enough of him to last me a lifetime."  
  
"Voldemort?" Wallace asked in confusion.  
  
"Even worse, my ex," she made a face, "I can't believe I wasted a year with him."  
  
Hikari smiled politely, as Wallace laughed. There were times when she wasn't sure precisely who Miyako was anymore. In moment of disgust, Yamato had once described her as a social chameleon, saying that she changed her colours depending on the situation. She had defended her friend at time, of course, but she was forced to admit that the older boy might have been right. Just the other day, Miyako had been telling her that she hadn't regretted a moment she spent with Ken.  
  
"Sorry," Takeru muttered, not sounding at all repentant. He returned to staring out of the window. If anything, his expression was bleaker than it had been before.  
  
"There's our school, Wallace," Hikari said in relief, as she saw the familiar, white building rising ahead of them. The decorating committee had obviously been busy. A deep-blue carpet flowed out from the door and spilled down the steps, like a river running into a waterfall. Fragrant rose bushes in pots turned the concrete slab outside the school into a garden, while fairy lights flickered and glimmered dimly in the trees. A few people were scattered among them, elegant in their gowns and suits. It was like stepping into a fairytale kingdom where no sadness or pain could exist.  
  
"Wow!" she breathed, "It's beautiful!"  
  
"It sure is, beautiful," Wallace agreed with a wink.  
  
The limo purred to a halt right in front of the stairs, and the chauffeur stepped out to open the doors for them.  
  
"This is so cool!" Miyako gleefully clapped her hands together, "Everyone's staring at us! I bet they've never seen a limo before!"  
  
Careful not to wrinkle her skirt, Hikari stepped out of the limousine and onto the pavement. The others climbed out behind her, Wallace giving Miyako his hand to help her and Takeru making an annoyed sound in response. She hoped things would be less tense once they got into the hall and started dancing. At least, they would be able to keep the two boys apart from one another there.  
  
Daisuke had said that he would wait outside for them, so that they could go inside together. She looked around for him and found him talking to a pretty, pink-haired girl whom she recognised as Iwakura Aiko, the class- president. He was dressed with his usual disregard for convention. His suit had once been a classic, dark pinstripe, but someone had scribbled writing down the back of the jacket that she couldn't read from the distance. Together with it, he wore a black Cowboy Bebop shirt with schematics of a spaceship on it and chunky boots. His old goggles were perched defiantly on the top of his head.  
  
When he saw them, he said something to his date before running to meet them. His hands were clenched into fists at his side, "Wallace! I'm so going to kick your ass!"  
  
"What?" Wallace took a step backwards, startled.  
  
"Remember what I said about leaving Hikari-chan alone if you came to Japan?"  
  
"I. . . I . . . I . . . She asked me to the dance . . . ."  
  
Daisuke laughed and threw an arm around Wallace's shoulder, "I'm messing with you, dude. I'm glad you're here with Hikari. You really have to meet my date too."  
  
"Is she hot?" Wallace waggled his eyebrows.  
  
"Oh yeah."  
  
"So, why is she going with you? Is she blind too?"  
  
"Hey! Try lucky!" Daisuke punched him, "Come on, I'll introduce you to her."  
  
"I'll go say hi too," Miyako said, "I haven't seen Iwakura-san for aaaages."  
  
"Sure," Daisuke replied easily, "You two coming?"  
  
"In a minute," Hikari said, thinking that this was a perfect opportunity to ask Takeru what was wrong with him. She glanced across to where he was still standing by the limousine, kicking listlessly at the loose end of the carpet. He looked so miserable and alone that she felt her own chest tighten in sympathy.  
  
"Okay," Daisuke smiled reassuringly at her, then turned back to Wallace and Miyako, "So, you do realise that you've screwed it up for all of us who can't afford limos . . . ."  
  
As the others walked away from them, Hikari slowly turned towards Takeru and took a deep breath to steady herself, "What's the matter? You've been acting strangely since Wallace arrived."  
  
"It's nothing," he shrugged, "Let's go and join the others."  
  
"No way," Hikari folded her arms across her chest, "We're not going anywhere until you tell me what your problem is. You're my best friend and I hate seeing you so unhappy."  
  
"And I hate seeing him feel you up!" Anger flashed in his voice. Hikari stared at him, as colour rushed into his face and he dropped his eyes to his shoes. She wished she knew whether he was jealous of Wallace or whether he was simply being overprotective of her. Either way, she didn't know what to say to him in return.  
  
"I'm sorry," Takeru mumbled, "It's none of my business what you two do."  
  
"I don't like it either," she confessed at last, "He's . . . Well, I sort of wish I hadn't invited him. I didn't have anyone else to ask, and I didn't want to go to my first dance alone."  
  
"Yeah, I should have asked you," he said, lifting his head to meet her eyes.  
  
Looking at him, Hikari felt warmth spread through her. She remembered what Taichi had said to her on that morning when she had been so depressed. I've seen how his expression changes when he looks at you. He gets this really amazed look in his eyes, like he can't quite believe what he is seeing, like there's this incredible person in front of him and she's somehow in his life. He still might not realise it, he still might think he likes another girl, but it's really you he loves. Standing with him in the middle of this fairytale kingdom, she could almost believe that was true.  
  
He continued, "I actually . . . ."  
  
"Hey, you two! The dance is about to start!" Daisuke called from the steps.  
  
"Uh, we better go," Takeru said with an apologetic smile, "I've probably been rude enough to everyone this evening."  
  
"It's okay," she gave him as a mischievous smile, as they headed towards the school, "I don't think Wallace has noticed. He's been too busy trying to look down the front of my dress."  
  
"If he tries anything . . . ." he said warningly.  
  
"I'll get my personal champion to 'kick his ass', as Daisuke put it," she laughed, "Well, that's if I don't do it myself."  
  
"Hikari," he paused in the middle of the path and turned to look at her, an unreadable expression on his face, "Umm, save a dance for me? I can't promise I won't step on your toes, but I'll try not to."  
  
"I was *hoping* you'd ask me," she smiled at him.  
  
"So, you'd be de*light*ed to accept?" he laughed.  
  
Hikari groaned. There were some puns that didn't deserve any other reply.  
  
*  
  
TO BE CONTINUED  
  
* 


	11. A NotSoPerfect Evening

I know this has been a long time coming, but aren't you glad it's here? ^_^  
  
Probably one more part after this.  
  
DANCING LESSONS PART 9 A NOT-SO-PERFECT EVENING  
  
If it hadn't been for Wallace's hand, Hikari thought, it would have been the perfect evening. When they had stepped into the hall, it had been like entering a faerie court, a place where magic was possible and everything ended happily. White banners painted with silver blossoms hung down from the walls and fluttered gently in the breeze. Paper butterflies and birds danced and wheeled above them, suspended from the ceiling by invisible strings. There seemed to be flowers everywhere, jasmine and roses filling the air with their wild, sweet scent.  
  
Somehow, they had managed to get the Teen-Age Wolves to play the event, although Yamato had always claimed that school dances were lame. Hikari privately suspected that Takeru had had a lot to do with it. Yamato pretended to be cool and remote, but he had never been able to say no to his little brother. At the moment, they were in the middle their newest hit, Ashita e no Mado. Yamato's beautiful voice soared above the guitar and drums as if an angel had quit the heavenly choir to join a rock band.  
  
All in all, it would have been a perfect evening, if Wallace's hand would have stayed above her waistline. It kept straying south and cupping itself around her bottom in the most uncomfortable way. No matter how many times she removed it, he never seemed to take the hint and it always found its way back again. She was debating kneeing him in the groin the next time that he tried it, but she did not think it would be a good idea to cause a scene. The last thing she needed was for Takeru to lose his temper and attack Wallace. She wouldn't have minded seeing Wallace get a fist in his face, but she didn't want Takeru to get in trouble with the school.  
  
With a little sigh, she looked past Wallace's blond head to where Takeru was dancing with Miyako. All her private fantasies to the contrary, he certainly hadn't been lying about not being able to dance. Even though it was a slow dance and he didn't have to do much more than stand in one spot and sway from side to side, he still managed to look awkward doing it. He had his back to her and was shifting his weight from one leg to the other, his feet pigeon-toed. He looked as if he were warming up to run a race rather than actually dancing.  
  
Miyako didn't seem to notice, however. Her body was pressed tightly against his and her head was tucked beneath his chin. She had a smug, little smile on her face, evidently enjoying being seen with the most popular boy in the school. Hikari felt her heart give a painful hop in her chest. She would have given anything to be dancing with him at the moment, and not only for the sake of her social status.  
  
"Daydreaming about me, gorgeous? You look like you're a million miles away," Wallace's hand slid down to her bottom and gave it a friendly squeeze. Hikari removed it yet again, resisting the urge to break one of his fingers in the process.  
  
"I wish I was," she muttered.  
  
"What was that, honey?"  
  
"Nothing," she gave him a smile, "I think we should sit the next song out, don't you? My feet are starting to hurt a little."  
  
"Whatever you want, angel."  
  
*********  
  
"It's a perfect night, isn't it?" Miyako said dreamily as she and Takeru sat drinking punch on one of the wrought iron benches that had been brought into the hall to give the dancing couples a place to rest. She uncrossed her legs gracefully and smoothed the silky fabric of her dress over her thighs. It was one of the tricks that Mimi had taught her and it never failed to draw boys' eyes.  
  
"I guess so," Takeru sounded distracted. He was running a finger around the edge of the polystyrene cup and frowning at the fizzy, pink liquid inside it. White flowers floated on top of it, "The hall's really pretty."  
  
Miyako sighed, slouching over her own cup. There was no point wasting her best seductive techniques on Takeru. He probably wouldn't have noticed if she had stripped naked and danced in front of him. So much for Hikari's theory that he was madly in love with her. He'd spent most of the evening watching her and Wallace anyway, a scowl on his handsome face.  
  
She nodded her head towards where Wallace and the other girl were sitting. Wallace had his hand around Hikari's waist and was chatting animatedly to her about something. Hikari didn't seem to be having quite as much fun. Her shoulders were slumped with misery and she was sipping at her punch as if she wished it were something stronger. Miyako didn't blame her. She'd seen the way that Wallace had been groping her on the dancefloor. It had taken considerable manoeuvring to make sure that Takeru did not.  
  
"Why don't you go over and ask her to dance? You know you want to."  
  
Takeru flushed, "W-what, Miyako-san? W-who do you mean?  
  
"Just because you're blond is no reason to play dumb with me," she jabbed him with a finger, "Ya-ga-mi Hi-ka-ri. You know, the girl you've probably been sickeningly in love with since you were eight years old."  
  
"Hikari just sees me as a friend," he muttered, not sounding at all convinced by what he was saying. Even his ears were bright red now, Miyako noticed in interest. She had never known a boy who could blush like Takeru, "I asked her how she felt about me and that's what she said."  
  
"For God's sake," she groaned, "You two are so pathetic. Let me lay it all out for you. You love her. She loves you. You should be together already, instead of moping about how you're just friends and driving the rest of us insane."  
  
"But . . ." Takeru protested.  
  
Miyako raised a hand to cut him off, "Go tell it to someone who cares. Like Hikari."  
  
"But . . ."  
  
"No buts! Tell her how you feel!" Miyako gave him a less than gentle shove.  
  
"Okay, okay," Takeru slowly got to his feet and started towards the other couple, but then paused and glanced back over his shoulder at her. Doubt clouded his blue eyes.  
  
"Are you sure this is a good idea?"  
  
"GO! That's an order from your senpai!"  
  
"Geez, okay."  
  
As he continued walking towards Hikari and Wallace, Miyako sighed and settled back against the bench. Boys could be so dense at times, and that went double for Takaishi Takeru!  
  
*********  
  
TO BE CONTINUED  
  
********* 


End file.
